Well, the year 2015 went by way too fast. Several changes came about and I’ll write about some of those very soon. Tomorrow I start Spring semester and I’m looking forward to that. I hope everyone is well and please don’t hesitate to contact us if you need any help or advice. I wish you all a successful, happy and prosperous year.

I know I promised an article months ago, however life has been very hectic this year. It’s no excuse, so I apologize for the delay. A lot of changes have taken place this year and more changes are coming. Each year of my recovery has been interesting and has had it’s fair share of challenges. Today, I have some good news to share with everyone. Yesterday, I reconnected with the neurosurgeon that saved my life. He’s doing well and is still at Stanford University making a difference. He was happy to hear from me and delighted that I have “thrived in life”. I reached out to him because I’m interested in having plastic surgery. I know some of you might disagree, but I’m more stable now than I’ve ever been and I feel it’s time to fix some scars. I’m hopeful I can have Stanford Hospital help me again and my neurosurgeon has recommended one of the best plastic surgeons there. As I move forward please wish me luck and remember if I’ve made it this far, so can you. Schwanomma brain tumors can be beat!!!

Our apologies for losing track of time. The article we promised in mid 2014 is still in work.

Life seems to pass us by before we even realize it. I definitely had several challenges during 2014, but I am hopeful 2015 will be considerably better. I’ll do my best to get an article posted this month though for sure. I hope everyone is well and please don’t hesitate to contact us if you need any help or advice.

We thought it was about time to give you all a short update on Travis. Surprise! This is Travis writing right now. Let me first apologize to all of our readers who have sent messages. I’m sorry I have not written back to you. I assure you I do read and monitor all comments. If I haven’t got back to you I will. If it’s something urgent please comment that and I will do my best to get back to you right away.

Anyway, I’m still doing great! I’m still employed and I’m still a full time student. I graduated towards the end of 2012 with my Bachelors of Science in Information Technology and Software Engineering. Shortly after graduating I applied to Purdue University and after a fairly lengthy process I was accepted to graduate school. As you can imagine I was thrilled. Present day I’m attending Purdue and it’s a challenging experience. However, I know when I finish it will all be worth it and I’ll have lived more successful days of life.

As far as flying, I haven’t started that yet. My plan is to continue once I graduate with my master’s degree. With that being said I don’t have much more to tell. I’ll be sure we try to post more often than we have been doing.

Remember to keep fighting and keep charging forward. It’s your life, live it like you own it.

Normally, my wife writes all of the article for her page. However, sometimes I think it’s good to address of all you who have read or are reading about me and my fight to survive. A lot has happened since my wife last wrote everyone, so let me briefly describe some of those things. Unlike my wife I’m certainly no story teller nor do I profess to be a talented writer. Where her blogs seem informative and interesting, mine can be completely the opposite.

Moving forward my last MRI revealed my brain tumor is still dormant. Unfortunately, I am back on some minor medications for pain and depression. However, I have not let that stop me from charging forward in life and my career.

Last year I earned my Advanced Open Water Diver certification. I enrolled in Pilot Ground School, which I just finished earlier this year and am now studying for the written tests so I can begin flying. I’ve had the opportunity to snowboard three times this season, I was promoted to a new position in my corporation, my wife and I celebrated another wedding anniversary and I am also scheduled to graduate this year with my BS in IT and Software Engineering. My plan is to continue on to Purdue University to obtain my MS in Engineering Management and Leadership. Life is certainly good right now and as you can see there’s always hope.

For those of you who think it’s not possible or your lives are over, think again. Keep fighting and keep charging forward. You can do anything you put your minds to. Always think positive and look forward to the good times instead of the bad. Life is always going to have challenges, but it’s up to you to conquer them and live on.

Here’s an article I wanted to share with you all. If this doesn’t motivate you to believe in me and my story, nothing will. The same way I can succeed, so can you.

Time just whizzes by. Last year my New Year’s resolution was to update this website at least once a month. Like most New Year’s resolutions… that never happened. It is not because I don’t care; it is a combination of being very busy and not really knowing what to write about. My passion to help people has not changed. It’s just that I have gotten so used to our life that I can’t really think of anything interesting and brain tumor or military related to write about.

Last year was certainly busy but looking back it seemed pretty uneventful in regards to Travis’ health. Don’t get me wrong, I am more than thankful that he is defeating his tumor but I feel somewhat removed from the caregiver role. I am not sure that I will ever “retire” from being a caregiver but Travis is significantly more independent than he was a couple of years ago. He is now in school full time and is working full time. He still lives with chronic pain in addition to other permanent adverse effects stemming from his tumors and the surgeries. However, over the last 12 months or so he has really learned how to manage his conditions in a way that allow him to live a more typical lifestyle. This does not meant that he does not have bad days; he still does from time to time. But he has more good days than bad.

This year we went on our first major vacation as a couple. Hawaii. I was nervous about going because I was worried he might not be able to participate in the physical activities that Hawaii is known for. He ended enjoying the ocean and snorkeling so much that within a month after we returned home he became a certified open water scuba diver another month later he became a certified advanced open water scuba diver.

This July 13th will mark the 4 year anniversary of Travis’ second (and last) surgery to remove his brain tumor. I doubt that when he was laying in the hospital trying to recover from surgery that he ever expected that he would be well enough to be doing everything that he is doing now.

As I reflect on the last 6 years I realize that the old saying, “no news is good news” pretty much sums up why this website had been on hiatus. I never thought that life could or would go back to normal for us but I was obviously wrong. I hope that this post gives you strength and encouragement that things can get better. Please do not ever hesitate to contact me regardless of the length of time in between my posts. I receive inquiries and comments from many people with many different stories and I am always willing to listen and do my best to help.

We would like to thank everyone for your continued support. Travis is doing much better, but is still struggling from time to time. Happy New Year to everyone and may this year be very successful and productive.

The other day I stepped into an elevator and out of the corner of my eye I saw a woman rushing toward the elevator. I pushed and held the “DOOR OPEN” button until the woman entered the elevator. The woman smiled at me and thanked me for holding the elevator for her. She mentioned that most people would not have held the elevator. I told her that it is sometimes the little things that mean so much. A minute or so later she stepped out of the elevator and then so did I. We went on our own separate paths. I did not know that lady and honestly I don’t even remember what she looks like. What has been stuck in my head is that holding the elevator for that lady was so simple but it made a positive impact in both her day and mine.

I have seen and read about coffee shops where one customer “pays it forward” and buys the stranger behind them a cup of coffee. The recipient of the free cup of coffee continues the act and before long hundreds of customers carry on this chain reaction. Every time I see or hear about these types of stories I get goose bumps.

Holding that elevator did not cost me a penny and I invested less than 30 seconds of my time. Paying it forward with a cup of coffee is only a few dollars. Normally the time, effort, and money that you put into a random act of kindness is so minute compared to the joy that you get out of it seeing the recipient’s reaction.

So please stop and think about giving this type of gift. Everyone has something to give. Eye contact and a smile, holding open a door, allowing someone to go ahead of you in line, these are just a couple of ways to get the ball rolling. Go ahead and try it!

I found a nice definition of a “random act of kindness” on Wikipedia. Just reading it made me smile. Imagine what the world would be like if everyone performed one random act of kindness a day?

“A random act of kindness is a selfless act performed by a person or persons wishing to either assist or cheer up an individual or in some cases an animal. There will generally be no reason other than to make people smile, or be happier. Either spontaneous or planned in advance, random acts of kindness are encouraged by various communities.”